INTERVIEW #44 ERIKSHJÄLPEN

Based in:
Head office in Huskvarna, Sweden.

Founded in:
The organisation in 1967 and the first Second Hand shop opened in 1990.

Founded by:

Erikshjälpen is a child rights organization founded by a child - to help other children. Our story starts in 1929 when Erik Nilsson was born in Ruda, Småland. As a hemophiliac, he spent a lot of time in hospital as a child. But instead of feeling sorry for himself, he began sending greetings and gifts to encourage other sick children. Erik wanted to do good for others and already in 1946, when Erik was 17 years old, his work was established.

Erik, or Uncle Erik as he came to be called, died in 1966 and was only 37 years old. But the work he started lives on and today thousands of children and families who live in vulnerability around the world have the opportunity to education and support and can themselves be involved in shaping their future. This is thanks to Erik's courage to make his dreams come true.

In 1990, the first second-hand stores were started, in Mölndal and Vetlanda. They were intended as a source of funding for the Erikshjälpen foundation's ever-growing development assistance activities. Erikshjälpen - as a foundation - could not engage in business and therefore a non-profit association was formed. Since 2004, the business has been called Erikshjälpen Second Hand and has a clear mission to support the foundation Erikshjälpen.

Shop at:

60 physical stores in Sweden, 2 in Norway and our e-commerce secondhand.se

Price range:
Lower price range

Thank you for being a part of our Store-interview series. For Swedes, Erikshjälpen might be a well-known place for thrifting but for our non-Swedish readers, what is Erikshjälpen Second Hand, how does your concept work?
Erikshjälpen Second Hand is a non-profit second hand organization that works to generate funds for the social and humanitarian efforts within Erikshjälpen. The job training in our second-hand shops also breeds confidence in the future for children with parents who are outside the labor market, and the circular sales provide climate hope for future generations. By offering  physical stores across large parts of the country and our e-commerce Secondhand.se, we want to make it as easy as possible for more people to choose second hand first.

Where is Erikshjälpen located and how many stores do you have? Are all of them their own organisations?

We have 60 stores in Sweden and 2 in Norway. About 50% of our stores is within our organization number, and the rest is a collaboration between Erikshjälpen Second Hand and a local partner.

How do you source the materials and the products you sell, clothes and furnitures?

All of our products are donated by people and organizations who want to support our mission.

If I donate to or buy from Erikshjälpen where does my money go?
The surplus from our second-hand operations contribute to enabling our efforts to ensure that children can go to school, feel good and be safe. Erikshjälpen is a children’s rights organization who collaborate with partner organizations in almost 20 countries to ensure that children’s rights are realized, according to local needs and conditions. This is where the dream begins. Within Erikshjälpen Second Hand, we contribute to hope for the future for children with parents who have been excluded from the labor market and we create climate hope for future generations through our circular business model.

You get a lot of stuff donated and it is known that in Sweden people donate more than they buy, where does the clothes goes that cannot be sold?

This is true. Swedish consumers are among the best at donating, but not as good at buying second hand. According to a study from Naturvårdsverket, more than half of Swedish consumers do not buy second hand clothing. In 2016, Swedish consumers donated 3,8kg of textile but only bought 0,8kg of second hand textiles in 2018. This means there is a large surplus to handle, which is usually exported. Erikshjälpen Second Hand collaborates with a small number of organizations in Europe to whom we donate clothing, shoes and accessories, furniture, electronic appliances and other things that hasn’t been sold in our shops.

What do you think about circularity in Sweden? What do you believe needs to change to make more people choose second hand first hand?

In Sweden, and the world at large, circularity is too low. However, progress is being made as we speak. To increase circularity at the society level we need both political instrument and taxes, scientific and business innovations, new logistic systems as well as changed consumer mindset and behavior. The market for second hand is growing every year and is now growing faster than the conventional retail market, so there is definitely a growing interest. But more people need to take action and to change their lifestyle in a more circular manner.

In what ways can donors and consumer makes it easier for you to do your work with social improvement and more circularity in the society?

We are happy for every donation being made to our second hand stores, as this is what makes it possible for us to do the work we do. Our social, environmental and aid mission are all dependent on the donations we receive. Anyone who wants to contribute with whole and clean products in good condition are more than welcome. In our business, the donation contributes to sustainability on several levels in contrast to leaving your old garments and products to conventional retailers for a discount, or selling them online. Another way to contribute is to give of your time - we are always looking for people who want to contribute as volunteers in our stores.  

Do you have any best selling products or any trends you can see among your consumers you would like to share with us?

Our best selling product category is household products. But we can also see an increasing trend in clothes in both number and value.